Was Napoleon Democratic or Autocratic? The French Revolution was a time when French citizens decided that they no longer wanted to be under the rule of King Louis XVI , who abused his power and they had decided to take a stand.During the revolution there were many deaths,and extremists, that things went haywire and their society did not improve at all. Then, Napoleon took the revolution into his own hands by becoming their ruler and improved French society. Based on his actions, people have been arguing whether Napoleon was an autocratic dictator, someone who used their power for themselves or a democratic reformer, someone who gave power to the people and valued equality .In various documents involving Napoleon’s conversations with others, his thoughts and opinions on certain topics, it is a fact that Napoleon was a democratic reformer. In a conversation with Barry O’ Meara in 1817, it revolves around Napoleon’s thoughts on his defeat in the battle in …show more content…
It states, “It is said that I love power. Well , does anyone have any cause for complaint? Never have the prisons been so empty and the people so safe. The government is strong, my hand is steady , and my enemies are sensible enough to know that I shall not slacken the reins.” This shows that Napoleon is a democratic reformer because he was determined to continue to improve French society . This is the case because people usually look forward to acquire authority only because of the luxuries that come along with it.This includes wealth and respect , so such rulers could frivolously spend their money ,but can get get away with it because citizens are obliged to respect them.As for Napoleon, he did not commit any selfish acts because he was most satisfied with the fact that the citizens did not feel troubled at all and was willing to contine to have the society progress from there
The message he is trying to send to his French audience is how a proper democracy works. He saw how the government in France was in shambles; thus, he wanted to discuss what allowed
Alexis de Tocqueville penned Democracy in America after he spent month America in the 1831, where he witnessed a new democratic system. He found it’s concepts to have unique strengths and weaknesses that he believed could be the inspiration for the new government of post-revolution France. The concepts of limiting individualism, encouraging positive associations, and moderating the tyranny of the majority that Tocqueville observed during his trip in America helped maintain the new democratic republic built after the revolution. As soon as America became free from British rule, their groundwork for their new government helped cement them as a true democracy since it contended with individualism. Tocqueville noticed that after a successful
Although he believed in a general will, Toussaint still believed that Haiti would be best off as an empire. In the Haitian Constitution, it is clearly stated that Jacques Dessalines is the emperor of Haiti. Monarchy directly contradicts many liberal beliefs, as it is a very conservative form of government. Conservatives were against change and progress, and thought that monarchy was the most effective form of government. However, Toussaint thought that his people were capable of making some decision, “ to the task of persuading Kings that their rights are confined to sitting upon a throne, while those of the people are to govern, and attacking all that centuries have bequeathed as holy and worthy of man’s respect-denying, in fact, the value of the past, and declaring themselves the masters of the future.”
Ideas that were formed by the enlightenment philosophers were used in the new government. The French, however, did not make significant progress toward ending absolutism and instead were subject to another absolute ruler immediately after the revolution. After the French revolution, Napoleon Bonaparte became emperor. In this role, Bonaparte had absolute power over France. But some traces of progress were seen, as Bonaparte created a fairer tax system, new schools and a new set of laws (some still in place over 200 years
The romantic movement swept across Europe during the nineteenth century. Poets, artists, and musicians at this time encompassed romanticism’s characteristics into their works. These documents will help to gain a better understanding of the characteristics through analysis and explanation. Romanticism is significant due to its characteristics of emotional exuberance, unrestrained imagination, and spontaneity in both artistic and personal life. To begin with, the literary and artistic scenes during this period were filled with emotive individuals.
After the French Revolution, a Corsican artillery officer, named Napoleon Bonaparte, became the emperor of France in 1804. After playing a significant role in trying retake the French port of Toulon, occupied by the British, he was appointed general at the age of 26 in 1793. This marked the beginning of the Napoleonic Era, which would change the course of European history for centuries. However, despite claiming to be a strong supporter of the French Revolution, Napoleon mostly undermined the goals of the Revolution by violating the Declaration of the Rights of Man, insisting on returning to principles of the Old Regime in regards to women, the imposition of taxes and the re-establishment of the social elite. Nonetheless, Napoleon still supported the main goals of the Revolution by establishing the Civil Code and supporting the peasantry by lowering bread prices.
Sarah Hussey Ms. Bell Social Studies 9B March 12, 2018 First Draft “They wanted me to be another George Washington” – Napoleon. This was a quote was said by Napoleon Bonaparte, himself. Napoleon intentionally conceded to the fact that he had betrayed the goals of the French Revolution. The values of the French Revolution were Liberty, Equality and Fraternity. Liberty of the people, in other words, the freedom of the people was extremely important to the French Revolution.
Napoleonic Rule The late 1700’s was a time of great discontent in France. The people of France revolted against their government in an attempt to gain power in political decision making. In this time, France experienced many forms of governments as the people fought for change. It was during the 1790’s that Napoleon Bonaparte became known to the people as a strong military leader.
His ideas were dominant over other philosophers' about how a government should be run during the beginning of the French Revolution. “Democratic and Aristocratic states are not in their own nature free. Political liberty is to be found only in moderate governments; and even in these it is not always found. It is there only when there is no abuse of power. But constant experience shows us that every man invested with power is apt to use it, and to carry his authority as far as it will go.”
People that were more poor, got a chance to earn more money. Another enlightenment idea that he supported was education and art, and he built free public schools so all children were able to get educated. Some might argue that he crowned himself king and his brother King of Spain, which means that he did not get rid of the monarchy even though that was one of the main ideas during Enlightenment. But Napoleon had plebiscites, people that were allowed to vote, and
Napoleon’s Imperial Decree at Madrid stated that “from the publication of the present decree, feudal rights are abolished... all feudal monopolies of ovens, mills, and inns are suppressed” (Document 8). By abolishing feudalism, Napoleon promoted liberty and freed people from their duties to their lords. Individuals no longer had to conform to their social status and were able to pursue their own success by having access to previously exclusive resources. Napoleon believed that the privileges of the upper class should be abolished (Pagano “Napoleon Domestic Program Good”).
Throughout the story, Napoleon becomes more and more corrupt. In chapter 9 of the story, Napoleon wins the presidential election. However, “...There was only one candidate, Napoleon, who was elected unanimously.” This shows how Napoleon is a totalitarian. There was nobody else that was resistant to him, so he used that against the people to win and go into total power.
Was the French Revolution preventable? This is a question that is fascinating to think about. What could have been done differently to prevent this revolution that cost countless people their lives? Why were others willing to give their lives, for what cause? Why was life so turbulent?
De Tocqueville doesn 't view liberty as an attribute part of the democratic era. He believes that the only character that is associated with this era is equality. He explains in his theory that people of this era prize equality over liberty, although he doesn 't deny that democratic people value liberty, because everyone can take part in it and enjoy it effortlessly, as opposed to liberty where you have to "sacrifice" to achieve it (De Tocqueville, 1835). He holds that equality creates individualism, which means people separate themselves from one another, their ancestors and the future generations, that leads to tyranny and despotism. On the contrary, he claims that during the aristocratic ages, people were not selfish and careless about others ' needs because "aristocracy links everybody, from peasant to king" (De Tocqueville, 1835).
One of Napoleon Bonaparte’s greatest achievements that made 1801-1805 the height of Napoleons political career was when he signed the Concordat on July 15th, 1801. The Concordat was an